sometimes I read things that are not fanfic...

[ratcreature]

Like just now I am reading Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke, because I had seen it recced a lot. But... so far (I'm only on page 344 of its slightly over 1000 pages) I'm kind of underwhelmed.

It hasn't really hooked me, a sure sign for that being that I read it mostly on public transport, whereas if I'm really engaged with a book I usually bother to take it out of my bag and continue reading it at home rather than leaving it. I still don't like any of the characters. I realize that that's probably intentional, but while the book is kind of interesting with its worldbuilding I'm starting to ask myself whether I really want to spend several hundreds of pages more with characters I dislike. Also, I find the whole excessive footnote thing kind of jarring. If it was just brief footnotes it would be different maybe, but some are four full pages long.

Comments

[thete1.livejournal.com]

Going by the people I *know* who I also know liked the book -- well, footnotes in and of themselves are *totally* a kink for people. Like, hugely so.

Also, unlikeable characters across-the-board. (Yeah, I dunno, either.) Beyond that... I waited too long after having seen the book recced to the skies to (try to) read it myself. It is a puzzlement.

[ratcreature]

Also, unlikeable characters across-the-board.

o.O
That is far more alien to me than a footnote kink...

I can see a certain writing skill in it, because I think it is quite hard to achieve that, when most readers' inclination is to want to sympathize and identify with characters (and I have identified with characters who "objectively" were total assholes or worse in fiction because of that), but... I don't see the attraction.